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This knife is great for learning the basics in Sushi/Sashami preparation and knife skills. It is in no way, shape or form, comparable to knives even in the $150 region. The handle is rough, the ferrule is cheap plastic, and the blade has a weird "horizontal grid" texture above the Shinogi line.

Why 4 stars then? Because it will save you HUNDREDS of dollars. How do I know this? Because I have seen no less than 8 different people show up, unwrap their $250 Yanagiba, and ruin it 5 minutes in.

This knife is great to learn how to do all of the basic cuts (hirizukuri, sogi giri, katsuramuki, etc), as well as some advanced ones without breaking the bank.

Also, SHARPENING. This comes with absolutely no ura oshi. I m not suprised however this knife is how I learned to sharpen single bevel knives and it has rewarded me with a great technique and understanding of how these knives work.

Its also a GREAT beginner size. the longer the yanagi, the more difficult to wield properly. So 210mm is my recommended starting length for most people. It comes surprisingly sharp out of the box, and takes an edge really well. I do not know what type of steel this is but if I ha to guess it seems like a softer version of stainless without the refinements.

A word of caution, this knife is single bevel. DO NOT go crazy and start trying to cut sweet potatoes. There is a technique involved, and this is a great tool to learn with. You can, and WILL cut yourself if you don't pay attention.

You wont shed a tear when it breaks, and if you mess it up, you wont care. Great learning tool and with a few months of using it youll be able to upgrade to something better.

I think this knife is a good value if you want this specific kind of specialized knife.

You might want to know that I'm a bit of a sharpening geek, and I spent some time getting the edge just how I wanted, but now that I have it slices like nothing else in my knife drawer (of about 20 knives). I'm not sure I would be this satisfied if I hadn't known how to resharpen the edge to my satisfaction. Others have noted it doesn't hold up to multiple re-sharpenings which I'm sure means they haven't known how to restore the edge properly. The steel is just fine. It's not super high-grade knife steel perhaps, but it takes a keen edge just fine and holds up when ground at the right angle.

I'm sure it's not for everybody. I'm not sure how long the factory edge would hold up without some loving care. And it's a very specialized knife, really optimized for slicing fish into sashimi-sized slices.

But I wanted to try out this style of knife and the next price point for a knife of this style was about $100, more than I wanted to pay to experiment.

For those who might care about the sharpening details, I started by flattening and then polishing the back to 2000-grit (actually just the edges of the back get flattened and polished since the back is hollow-ground). This is a must-do step to get a really keen edge since the edge is only ground on one side (like a plane iron). Then I trued up the primary grind on the other side to 15 degrees (seemed like it was about 17 to start), then put a secondary edge at about 20 degrees when the 15 degree edge wouldn't hold up very well. With the secondary edge polished to 2000-grit, the edge cuts (slices, not chops) extremely well, better than any knife I've ever used, and seems to be holding up well with a gentle (ceramic) steeling before each use.

I feel like I have a good feel for this style of knife now and might invest in a higher-end model later if the spirit moves :)

Do note that this knife is shorter than described and as it appears in the picture. The blade length is 200mm, not 300mm, and the overall length of the knife, including handle, is 320mm. Knife length is properly described by the length of the cutting blade, not including the handle.

I have been using this knife for about a year now and it is still sharp. It comes razor sharp out of the box and if you keep it honed then it should last you a long time.The GOOD: Extremely sharp and heavy enough to do some tougher cutting. This is my go to knife for cutting my sushi rolls. It has an edge on one side only so make sure that you don't sharpen the flat side.

The BAD: Nothing, this is a great knife for the price.

Please vote if this review helped you.

This is my honest opinion and I have NOT been compensated for this review or been given any discounts.

I have a two-hundred dollar sushi knife. Bought this to practice sharpening this style before I took my nice knife to the stone. Not only did it serve that purpose, but it is a razor. I find myself using it much more frequently than the expensive knife - not because it is better, it isn't. But I'm not worried about it as much and it is stainless (which sticks to my knife magnet). It's the only cheap knife on that magnet and money well spent. (The handle does need treatment of some sort - it is a sponge until you get something on or into it.)

This inexpensive knife has really renewed my interest in preparing interesting and beautiful meals featuring vegetables.As a weekend cook I did not want to spend a whole lot on a name brand knife so this was a cautiously made choice and I am very pleased with my decision. I watch a lot of youtube videos on how to prep food and my Dexter knives were too unwieldy. This light well balanced razor of a knife lets me feel like a chef when I get the urge to imitate my favorite cooking shows. You may have to sharpen it more often that a higher end knife (I wouldn't know) but at this price it's worth it to me, I think I'll buy a couple more while the price is right!

These knives didn't come razor sharp, and as i am sure you've read the other reviews, they will rust easily if not taken care of. You get what you pay for with these as far as the handle is concerened and where the blade meets the handle (solved with small tube of windshield glass repair) I did the mustard thing for patina and it worked pretty good. i also used some vinegar and a few other things. i will post a pic later when i can. You can see the patina on it, and its holding up well. Get a whet stone and your all good to go.